Soldering-iron



(No Model.)

J. S. HULL.

SOLDBRING IRON.

No. 248,321. Patented Oct. 18,1881.

WITNESSES. INVENTQR Mum/m 42% way.

ATTORNEY.

N. PETERS. Fhflo-Lilhngnphun Wrnhinglun. nv C.

UNiTEn STATES PATENT Grate-i3.

JOHN S. HULL, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

SOLDERlNG-IRON.

SPECIFICATION forming-part of Letters Patent No. 248,321, dated October 18, 18 1.

Application filed August 1, 1881.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN S. HULL, of Baltimore city, State of Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Solderiug-Irons; and I hereby declare the same to be fully, clearly, and exactly described, as follows, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation ofthe device complete. Fig.2 is a similar view of a modified form of the lower part of the same; and Fig. 3 is a side elevation, on a somewhat enlarged scale, of the iron and solder feeder.

My invention has for its object to providea heater for the soldering-irons used in capping provision-cans, whereby the iron may be kept at the desired temperature for an indefinite time, and the loss of time and materiahwhich is mainly attributable to inefficient capping as at present practiced may be avoided.

The conventional capping-iron consists of a copper-soldering-tool removably mounted in a suitable holder through which passes the center rod. The iron being heated the point of the rod is stepped in the central indentation of the can-cap, and the iron is twirled about the rod after the manner of a pair of dividers, its point running in the cap-groove and melting the solder which was previously placed there. The iron soon cools off and must be reheated, its place being taken by a second iron,which was heating pending the use of the first.

I would here state that I am aware that it is not new, broadly, to maintain a flame upon a soldering-iron pending its use, as various devices are known in which a gas-jet is made to play upon the iron, and in others gasoline is used; but none of them have superseded the old center-rod iron and fire-pot,which is almost universally used in the large cannin g establishments'.

The work done by the common iron is necessarily anything but uniform, the iron being liable,when firsttaken fromthefire-pot and nearly red hot, to burn the solder and cause blowholes by reason of the evolution of steam from the contents of the can, and when the iron is nearly cooled off the fact is only made apparent by the inefficienoy of its work. An antecedent and undetected defect becomes apparent when the cap blows off in the process vat. These defects are obviated by the device form- (No model.) Patented in England March 4, 1879.

ingthe subject of my present invention. I maintain the iron at a uniform temperature, and afford facility for the operation of capping by means of certain features of construction that are hereinafter fully described and made the subject of the claims.

In the drawings,A is the handle, and B the reservoir, constructed of stout sheet metal, and having a suitable orifice, a, through which gasoline orequivalentvolatile hydrocarbon may be supplied to the reservoir, and with which a suitable condensing air-pump may be made to communicate.

Into the base a of the reservoir the center rod, b, is screwed, and transversely through the bottom of the reservoir is screwed the supplypipe H of the burner. This pipe is laterally perforated at h for the entrance of the gasoline, and being threaded externally the burner may be adjusted to or from the iron, as may be desired.

Into the chamber I of the burner passes the valve-rod t, by means of which the fiow of gasoline may be regulated. The jet-tube t is the usual laterally-perforated Bunsen pipe, and is bent at right angles, in order to deliver the blast horizontally against the iron nearits point.

For a more particular description of the burner see-my patent of April 20, 1880, No. 226,753.

The soldering-iron c is a copper bar having its lower end curved to conform to the capseam, and is held in a block, 0, by means of a set-screw, 0'', so that it may be fed down as it wears away. The block 0 is bifurcated, so as to embrace the rod I), and is slotted, as shown, for the passage of the pivot-screw E.

Throughthe rod 1) passes a bar, F, having a curved guide, G, on its end through the slot,

'in which passes a pin, g,th at connects the ends of the part 0. The bar F is secured in the rod b by a screw,f. By these means the iron is maintained at a constant distance from the rod 1), but is free to rise and fall as it encounters any roughness in the seam. As an alternative for this construction I may use that shown in Fig. 2, in which the block 0 is pivoted at l to a bar, L, which latter passes through a block, m, on the rod 1), and is secured by a set-screw, Z. In either case the point of the iron is free to tilt upward, and the iron may be adjusted bodily to or from the rod by loosening the screws 1 or f and pushing the bars F or L in or out as desired.

To the side of the block 0 is attached a block, n, through which passes a funnel-shaped tube, D, secured by a screw, (1. The lower end of this tube is nearly in contact with the iron,as shown.

In operation the burner is ignited and the iron heated to the required temperature. The point of the center rod is then placed in the indentation of the can-cap, and a piece of sol der is thrown into the tube D. The device, in eluding the center rod, is then rotated, the end of the rod constituting the pivot, and the iron traverses the cap-seam and spreads the solder, which, meanwhile, melts and flows out upon the seam.

Instead of applying the solder through the tube D the device may be used in the ordinary way with segment-solder or drop-solder laid in the cap-groove.

The reservoir B may be made large enough to hold a quantity of gasoline sufficient for a whole days work, as the heat being constantly supplied to the iron a very small jet keeps it amply hot enough.

The handle A serves as a reservoir for compressed air, and is furnished with a springseated valve, a, to relieve any undue pressure caused by the volatilization of the gasoline.

To protect the reservoir from the heat a shield, M, is made to surround its base.

The device is most efficient and satisfactory in operation, its efficiency being mainly due to the fact that the iron is kept at a constanttemperature.

The subject-matter of the annexed claims 1 and 2 is patented to me in British Letters Pattent, dated March 4, 1879, sealed May 9, 1879.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a soldering-iron, a gasoline-reservoir surmounted by a chamber for compressed air, a. pivot-rod attached to the end of the reservoir, a soldering-iron located at one side of the rod and parallel therewith, and a self-generating burner having rigid communication with the reservoir, arranged and operating substantially as set forth.

2. In a soldering-iron, a gasoline-chamber surmounted by an air-chamber substantially cylindrical in cross-section and constituting a handle for revolving the device, a central pivotal rod projecting from the base of the reservoir, a soldering-iron parallel with the rod, and a self-generating burner having rigid communication with the reservoir, the parts being combined and operating as set forth.

3. In combination with the reservoir for air and gasoline, the central pivot-rod and selfgenerating burner having rigid communication with the reservoir, a soldering-iron intermediate the bnrner and rod and susceptible of a free rising and falling motion, as set forth.

4. In combination with the pivot rod and handle, the soldering-iron and slotted bars 0 and F, pivot-pin E, and pin g, as set forth.

5. In combination with the reservoir and hollow handle, the pivot-rod, burner, and soldering-iron, the solder-duct D, and means of supporting the soldering-iron and duct from the pivot-rod, as set forth.

JOHN S. HULL.

\Vitnesses:

it. D. VVILLIAMS, J No. T. MADDOX. 

